Interview and Giveaway With Author Inez Kelley

FV: Hi Inez, welcome to Fiction Vixen. Why don’t you tell us a little about yourself?

IK: I’m boring. I spend my life talking to imaginary people and washing real people clothes, feeding children and taxi-ing them places. *shrug*

FV: A reader is about to purchase one of your books for the first time. They don’t know you are the author and they ask you what you like about the author’s style and her books. You don’t want to embarrass her by telling her you are to author so you go with it. How do you answer?

IK: Well, if you like fantasy, Myla by Moonlight and Salome at Sunrise are beautiful, filled with sensual imagery and love stories so pure that they are only possible in the fantasy realm. If you want fast and hot, the novellas are the way to go. Short stories that still manage to tell a complete story with a high heat level. In Jinxed, the comedy takes center stage but the romance will make you ache. If you like the ache, Sweet as Sin delivers it tenfold. It is a darker emotional story that will rip your heart out and squeeze it.

FV: I have to say I totally agree with you about the heart ripping and squeezing. Sweet as Sin made me ache but I loved it.

FV: Tell us a little about your upcoming release, Turn It Up.

IK: TURN IT UP is a sassy tale of friends who discover they want more. It’s a lighter look at sex and a deeper look at forever and infertility.

Dr. Bastian Talbot and self-proclaimed sex goddess Charlie Pierce heat up the air waves with their flirty banter as radio hosts Dr. Hot and the Honeypot. Off the air, they’re best friends…but Bastian wants to be so much more. He wants Charlie—in bed, and forever.

Problem is, Charlie doesn’t do commitment. Sure, she’s had X-rated fantasies of Bastian, but he was always just a friend—until he impulsively proposes and unleashes the lust they’ve been denying for years. Charlie’s willing to explore where their wild chemistry leads, but she won’t marry him. And he won’t have sex with her until she accepts his proposal, despite her seductive schemes.

What are Dr. Hot and the Honeypot to do? Ask their listeners for advice on how to tame a sex kitten and turn a perfect gentleman into a shameless lover. The Race to Wed or Bed is on…who will turn up on top?

FV: What do you think readers will like most about Turn It Up?

IK: The interaction between Charlie and Bastian. They love to verbally spar-off and the dialogue is quick, smart and witty. They truly LIKE each other and that comes through.

FV: Friends-to-lovers is one of my favorite tropes. I loved that Bastian and Charlie were longtime friends and they worked together as radio talk show hosts. Where did you get the idea for this story?

IK: I had this character in my head for a while, a vixen who looked like Betty Boop and had no issues wither forward sexuality. I didn’t know what to do with her, really. When I sat to write a new story, she hopped on the page and said it was her turn. I had to find her polar opposite as a hero and they took it from there. The radio business just seemed fitting and I had the background to weave that into the story.

There also existed in my brain this guy, this long haired tattooed man with a drug issue. He wormed his way in as a secondary.

FV: Bastian has a sensitive medical condition and I don’t think I’ve seen many authors “go there” in a romance novel. At least not in the way you did. Did you research his problem?

IK: Oh yes. I don’t hide the fact that Bastian is sterile. I think it pops up in chapter two, so it’s no big secret. It shouldn’t be. It isn’t something shameful or something he should be embarrassed by. For several years, I was part of an infertility group and heard hundreds of stories. They took root in my brain so when it appeared in the story, I went, “Oh, okay” and just ran with it.

Still, I had two medical doctors who double-checked what I myself had researched through the internet. Personal interviews with some men, and through my own experiences with infertility. I also had a Urology nurse who assists on these procedures as a crit partner. She walked me through some issues. Bastian’s condition is real and there are thousands of men who deal with it every day. I wanted to get it right.

FV: Here at Fiction Vixen we always include our favorite quote or moment from the books we review. What is your favorite quote from Turn It Up?

Oh God, there are so many! I really let my word-diva show in this book. Some of my favorites give spoilers away so those I can’t share. I’ll give you two quotes and special moment, okay?

1- Bastian was Ward Cleaver in modern times. Charlie’s idea of a pearl necklace was nowhere near June Cleaver’s.

2- “I’m sorry. Can we chalk it up to blue balls talking?” // “Wow, your balls sound just like you.”

Instead a sweet song rose into the night, a gentle tune from a simpler time, medicine for an aching soul. She let the music sluice over her. He doctored her with melody.

“Littlebit, are you in love with him?”

An easy question with a hard answer. Charlie didn’t lie. Was she in love with Bastian? Salt coated her tongue and stung her eyes. “He knows I love him. I’ve told him that before.”

The falling night pressed too heavily. Love was risky but sex was safe. She was good at sex, not love. She could talk orgasms and foreplay all day, but commitment made her bones itch and her throat close. Spinning around, she pressed her butt against the iron and tried to divert the conversation with a flirty look.

“He knows I want him, too.”

Caz fingered up the guitar neck, eyes trained on the strings, and shook his head. “Don’t marry him, Charlie. If you’re just in heat and not in love, it’ll never last. But don’t regret it when he moves on.”

The twanging note pierced her heart like a knife.

FV: Do you get a lot of feedback from readers? Does it ever influence your writing?

IK: I love reader mail. I get a fair amount but would love more (hint hint) I try and respond to them all personally. I can’t describe what it means to a writer to have someone say they read your book and it touched them in THIS way. It is magic. As for influencing my writing, only in that I want to stay true to what the majority of that feedback praises, that I don’t shy from the ugly parts or the real-life aspects of the story.

FV: How many books do you usually write in a year?

IK: I can’t answer that, really. It depends on length and genre. Some books take a year to write, others a few weeks. I try to have something new happening all the time.

FV: No one in my immediate family reads romance and that just kills me since I like to talk about the books I read. Do your friends and family read your books?

IK: No. Which sucks. When I am fan-girl squealing over my favorite books, my husband just looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. I have to go online to get my interaction with other readers.

FV: It seems like almost every author has had at least a few interesting or unusual jobs in their lifetime. It’s like a prerequisite to writing good novels or something. 🙂 Spill the beans, Inez. Where you ever a candidate for a feature on Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs?

In my life I’ve been a hotel maid, a kitchen-crew for a catering company, a reporter, working a radio station, a restaurant manager, and a 911 dispatcher.

FV: What do you do for fun when you aren’t writing?

IK: I like to read and bake. Told you, I am boring.

FV: What piece of writing advice are you glad you followed or ignored?

IK: Followed? That you have to ignore the market and write what you are passionate about. IGNORED? That readers don’t want to deal with realism in their stories. That one I don’t ignore so much as I pick and choose what to put in my stories. I don’t think readers want to read about the two hours and twenty minutes the heroine spent on hold with the insurance company, etc. But the real problems, the imperfect things with her or the hero, those things can make a story or character richer.

FV: What can we look forward to from you as far as future releases?

IK: Uhm… I have none scheduled at this time. BUT I have one in submission right now, one I am supposed to be revising (it’s on the to-do list) and a novella series I am planning out. I also have a few other things up my sleeve I hope to see come to fruition in the next year.

Thanks so much for chatting with me today Inez, it was fun!

****Giveaway****

Inez would like to giveaway two e-book copies of Turn It Up to two lucky readers. As you can see from reading this interview, Inez has tried her hand at several different romance sub-genres. To enter to win a copy of Turn It Up, leave a comment on this interview and tell us your favorite romance sub-genre or ask Inez a question if you’d like to. Your answer will not affect your chances of winning, I just like to know what people like to read. 🙂

Giveaway is open until August 5, winner announced soon after. Open to anyone who can read e-books! Good luck.

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About FV Sophia

Sophia resides in Southern California. She is a wife, mom, coffee drinker, Mac and MAC addict, Kindle lover, and a bunch of other stuff too. Most importantly, she's a firm believer in Happy Ever After and actively avoids reality, one page at a time.

I loved Sweet As Sin! And I’m sure I’m goint to love Turn It Up, too. It sounds really great! Now, my favourite subgenre depends on my mood. Sometimes I want to read a Historical and sometimes something more steamy or paranormal or whatever.
Thank you for the giveaway!

What a fabulous interview. Really fun and interesting. I absolutely loved TURN IT UP, so I don’t need to win it, but I will still answer the question: contemporary romance or romantic suspense. Smiles….

Holly, as for character inspiration, not really. My characters usually appear in my brain fully formed and complete. Charlie lived in my head for a long time(Caz too) but Bastian took his sweet time about showing up to round out the cast. TURN IT UP is along the same vibe as JINXED, more comedic and light-hearted but with the realism tucked in.

“Jinxed” is fabulous – I loved, loved the h/h relationship in that story as it’s so different from what you usually read. “Turn it Up” is similar in all the right ways, but I love how Inez writes her characters in all her stories, so it’s a win/win all ’round!

It depends on the phase I’m in really. Currently I seem to switch between SFR (Science Fiction Romance) and Historical Romance, but I’m coming from a very severe Contemporary phase… It mostly goes in binges really.

Sometimes I don’t really focus on a genre, but more on a trope. The friends to lovers trope is definitely amongst my favorites, so Turn it Up looks interesting.

Bernadette, It *CAN* hurt you. I know many authors do it but you have to be prepared for the back-lash. For example, I’ve had reviewers dock stars or whatever because the story wasn’t hot enough to be called an erotic. I’ve never written a full length erotic. My novellas are erotic romances. But the broad paintbrush hits. Readers who found me through my hotter stuff tend to expect that heat. Readers who read my fantasies first are then taken back by the amount of heat in my other stuff.

What DOES help is being consistent in your output. A theme or subtext that follows all of your work will help readers identify you no matter what the genre. For me, that seems to be my voice. I am slightly lyrical and stray toward emotional breaking points. The only thing I can assure any reader of my work is that I ALWAYS strive to make them feel what my characters feel, both the good and the bad.

As for easier… In a way, yes. Epublishers are more willing to take a chance and face it, if your readers are already internet savvy, there is your market. I’ve ‘met’ more readers than I ever imagined through the internet. While FB and I are not BFF, you will pry my twitter from my cold dead fingers. I *LOVE* that anyone who has read me can tweet me and say hi, can share my link with a dozen friends or ask me stuff. The lines between readers and writers is blurred but in a great way. Me, the author, is available in live time and I’ve yet to hear one author complain about a person talking about their books.

But even today, there is the segment of the world who view epublishing as somehow LESS than traditional work. They relegate it to vanity(self) publishing of 5-10 years ago or assume it is all major kink erotica. Romance Writers of America is slooooooowly changing their minds and opening some doors as are publishers like Samhain and Carina with books on the NYT and USAToday best sellers lists.

Is it easier? Yes but who knows if it will be tomorrow. The whole business is changing as fast as technology allows and right now, that is hyper-speed.

thanks for the great interview and giveaway! I can’t choose one! My fave sub-genre right now is probably historical romance, but romantic suspense is another one that I have recently been obsessed with!

Hi Inez! Hi Sophia! I loved reading romance, whether it be contemporary, fantasy, paranormal, etc. I could relate to Inez, my life is somewhat a little predictable…I’m a pediatrcian… so sometimes people are surprised that I enjoy reading books that are not medically-related.
Reading is like my zen space, my time to escape and relax. It’s nice to find a book-lover review site (like Goodreads), where I get to share my thoughts with people who share the same passion for books like me.
And also, I also have a paperback back in my bag, aside from the ebooks stored in my iPod and laptop… I’m still contemplating whether I’ll get an iPad or an android or Nook. Decisions! Hahaha…
Hope to hear from you soon! =)

I love paranormal romance. I’ve been reading everything I can get my hands on with it.
I’m always curious to see where authors do their writing. Are you the type that holes up in a room away from the hustle and bustle of your house? Or ones that thrive in the midst of chaos?

I *WISH* I could hide away. My twins would demolish the house, wrecking crew style. I do work okay in chaos. I wrote a lot during down-times at my last job as a 911 dispatcher. You learn to switch gears pretty fast in that job. But for heavy, intense scenes, I tend to write late at night when the house is quiet.

Although I read some contemporary, I mostly read historical romance. Since I read for the “escape from daily life,” HR helps me do that more completely. (Certainly, there’s no comparison between my real life and an historical romance set in Regency England or the Scottish Highlands!)

I love paranormal romance, Sci-Fi romance, erotice romance, oh, heck… I’ll read anything that has romance in it! LOL! I haven’t read anything by Inez but I’m thinking that’s going to have to change now that I’ve found out about her!

Great giveaway and interview. I recently finished Sweet as Sin and it is at the top of my all time favorites. Right now I am reading a lot of historical romance and am really enjoying them but paranormal romances first got me interested in the romance genre.

What I love most about “Turn it Up” is the concept of the “friends to lovers” trope – but with a twist. i love that it’s the men who are so confident in the HEA being possible, and that they have to convince the women that it’s possible. Historicals, contemporaries – I love them all.

While I’m a huge fan of series (my bookshelves, e-reader and bank balances can attest to that), I’m really, really digging the stand-alone books at the moment. I think it’s a brain cleanse in a way, and while I often finish the book wondering about some of the secondary characters, a book as wonderful as “Sweet as Sin” works beautifully for me all by itself. As much as I’d love to hear more about how John & Livvy are doing (and I did, via Inez’s website – so great – thanks!), I’m also quite happy knowing that their story has been told so completely.

Wow – this book got so many good reviews I’ve added it to my TBR pile! Would love to read it. I read all kinds of romance but esp. love Kresley Cole, Ilona Andrews, Nalini Singh and Julia Quinn. Thanks for the giveaway!

this book sounds great and would love to win. thanks for the giveaway and the chance to win. have not read anything by this author yet and this book sounds great and would love to win and read this book.christinebails@yahoo.com

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